It took a game, game and a half, but finally the Xs and Os aligned in perfect harmony. A Florida football team that appeared discombobulated for stretches against Miami of Ohio and South Florida righted itself.

The Gators scored 31 second-half points on the way to a convincing 38-14 victory over USF. Offensively, the Gators got big plays from their running backs. Defensively, they forced key turnovers while cobbling enough plays on special teams to head into next weekend's showdown at Tennessee feeling confident about their collective progress.

"We have a lot of new starters on offense and defense," UF running back Emmanuel Moody said. "The first game we got the jitters out. This is Florida. We're not going to come out and two play bad games. We're going to fix what we have to fix. And with a great leader in (Florida) coach (Urban) Meyer, he's going to help us get there.

"It was the first game. We looked great in practice. Play in the game, that shows your true identity. The first game we had mistakes, the second game we played the Florida football that we're used to."